The Nintendo GameCube (Japanese: ニンテンドーゲームキューブ), officially abbreviated GCN or NGC is Nintendo's sixth-generation home console. The console was released on September 14, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia. It is a powerful system, with a compact design, four controller ports, a controller with an ergonomic design, small but large-capacity discs, a large game library, connectivity with the Game Boy Advance and a form of online play. The console's surface has three buttons on top: Open, Reset, and Power. In 2006, it was succeeded by Wii, which also features ports for most GameCube hardware as well as compatibility for its software. The system's lifespan ended in 2007.